'Very eager' Gil hurls first BP session since suffering lat strain

NEW YORK -- Luis Gil grinned in the Saturday morning sunshine atop Yankee Stadium’s mound, dressed head to toe in pinstripes -- just like the last time he stood there, starting a World Series game.

This was just a live batting practice session, Gil’s first since sustaining a high-grade lat strain in late February. But as Gil pumped his arsenal through the strike zone in a 20-pitch session, it was easy to envision the right-hander doing it for real in the not-too-distant future.

“I felt really good out there,” Gil said through interpreter Marlon Abreu. “It’s been a process; you heal, little by little. It felt good to get on the mound and face some hitters.”

With several Yankees reserves in Saturday’s lineup, bullpen catcher Peter Serruto and information coordinator Ryan McLaughlin were asked to grab bats and stand in against Gil, the American League’s reigning Rookie of the Year.

The duo of right-handed hitters was “definitely a little overmatched” by Gil’s mid-90s heat, according to manager Aaron Boone, though the staffers did connect for a couple of fouls. Even in a near-empty ballpark against a pair of team employees, Saturday’s session carried weight for the 27-year-old Gil.

“I’m very eager,” Gil said. “From the moment you go through an injury like this, immediately you want to get back on the field. It’s about competing, helping your team and being out there with those guys.”

Gil enjoyed what Boone called a “really special season” in 2024, going 15-7 with a 3.50 ERA across 29 starts, edging the Orioles’ Colton Cowser to become the Yankees’ first pitching Rookie of the Year since Dave Righetti in 1981. Gil started twice in the postseason, including Game 4 of the World Series at Yankee Stadium, the Yanks’ only win over the Dodgers.

This is the second significant layoff of Gil’s still-brief Major League career; he underwent Tommy John surgery in early 2022, costing him all of ’23.

“What you learn the first time during the process, one of the key things is how focused you’ve got to be,” Gil said. “You’re following the work that’s ahead of you, having really good discipline with it and sticking with it to get back as soon as you can.”

There’s still a long road ahead -- more live BPs, followed by a stretch of stamina-building Minor League rehab starts -- but Boone said he is envisioning Gil’s return as akin to a Trade Deadline acquisition.

If Gil can return in late July or early August and perform as he did last season, the Yankees’ depth will be significantly boosted.

“It is still a ways off, but what he could bring would definitely be a good shot in the arm,” Boone said. “The biggest thing is, when do you get him to 75, 80 pitches? I know we’ll be methodical with that and careful with that.”